Rosario Resort has long been a beloved landmark deeply embedded with sentimental value among the Orcas Island community and among boaters who have introduced their children and children’s children to the beauty of the San Juan Islands. Empower Investing, a Washington company founded by Chris Robison, is the new owner of Rosario Resort and lives on the Island with his family.
Robison says he is planning a series of renovations to enhance the visitor experience, while maintaining the resort’s historic character to be renamed Rosario Village. The resort is currently open and taking reservations for lodgings and marina guest moorage (call 360-376-2222 #1). The previous owner closed the resort temporarily and laid off 47 workers in order to complete the sale transaction. Empower Investing plans to hire staff back as each phase of the renovation is completed.
Ownership History. The 54-room Rosario Mansion was built in 1906-1909 by shipbuilder Robert Moran, who was told that he had only one year to live. The property subsequently sold twice as a residence. Gilbert Geiser purchased the estate for $225,000 and repurposed the property as a resort in 1960. In 1978, the resort was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and changed hands multiple times. Jarrel Barto has been the steward and owner of the resort for the past 16 years.
Empower Investing finalized an agreement with Barto that involved multiple real estate transactions totaling more than $20 million, with closings at different times. The first piece closed during the second week of April and included the Mansion, Marina, and several parcels. This is the first time a local has owned the resort.
What Happened to Moran? Robert Moran served as the Mayor of Seattle from 1888 to 1890 and worked to rebuild the city after the Great Seattle Fire. Moran was only 18 years old and penniless when he came to Seattle in 1875 from New York City. He sent for his brothers; and in 1882, started Moran Brothers Company, a marine repair and shipbuilding business. In 1904, his shipyard launched the USS Nebraska, Washington State’s only battleship. He was told in 1905 that he had only one year to live so sold his shipbuilding business and retreated to Orcas Island where he built the Moran Mansion.
Moran spent the remainder of his retirement on Orcas Island, and in 1921 donated 2,700 acres to the State of Washington for preservation, now known as Moran State Park. After his wife’s death in 1932, he put the estate up for sale, which sold years later. Robert Moran died in 1943, having spent a remarkable life, and is buried in the Moran family plot in Lake View Cemetery, Seattle.
